HDT 2013 Truck Fleet Innovator Robert E. Low
Robert E. Low, founder and president of Prime Inc., is a 2013 HDT Truck Fleet Innovator.
Robert Low bought his first truck while in college. Prime grew so fast that he had to declare bankruptcy in the early '80s when skyrocketing interest rates caught up with him.
Prime driver Steve Rowan
Prime driver Victor Blackburn. “We want our drivers to be as capable and as qualified and as knowledgeable and as smart as they can be,” Low says.
Low believes helping drivers be healthier is extremely important. He sometimes catches a lunchtime game with drivers and other employees at the company's Springfield, Mo., gym.
“The driver as the owner of the truck is the best way to pay drivers, and the most powerful way to motivate them to act like business-people and be rewarded for the right business practices such as fuel efficiency and productivity."
Today, Prime has more than 5,000 trucks in its fleet, and two-thirds of those are independent contractors.
Prime is a participant in the Wreaths Across America Program, putting wreaths on veterans' graves for the holidays.
Prime drivers Cliff and Wanda Humphries. Prime uses its experienced contractors as CDL training instructors, along with some classroom training, simulators and a private training pad, to help train new drivers.